A Worshipful Heart

I Need Your Prayers as I Head to Rwanda!

What an exciting few months! I've only been back from India for two weeks and now I'm heading to Rwanda! I will be leaving on Wednesday, March 17th with friends from e3 Partners Ministry. We'll be sharing the gospel, discipling new believers, planting four churches and then we'll be holding two conferences - one for Children's Ministry and one for Worship. As you might guess, I'm helping to head up and teach at the Worship Conference. My prayer is that this will be the first of many worship conferences held in the countries where e3 ministers. 

And so I'm asking for your help again. I need a group of prayer warriors to gather around me and do warfare on my behalf, our ministry team and the precious people of Rwanda. 

Many of these people have endured great heartache and may be hearing the Good News of Jesus Christ for the first time in their life! It is estimated that for every North American that goes to Rwanda, approximately 100 people come to know Jesus. Now THAT is exciting!!

Here are some ways you can pray:

• God to be glorified

• Genuine professions of faith 

• Campaigners to be “filled with the Spirit”

• Unity and flexibility of all team members 

• God’s “hedge of protection” around our  

mission points against Satan and his minions 

• Boldness, clarity and graciousness in preaching Christ 

• Many open hearts and minds for the Gospel 

 • That we truly worship the Father in “Spirit and truth!” 

• New fellowships to be firmly established 

• Good attitudes, health, safety and protection 

• E3 Rwandan Leadership – Anna Kayisinga, Asnath Uwizeye and Alex Nteganira 

• Great Communication (especially across cultures) 

• Godly mission point and church leadership 

• Protection and care for our family at home. 

• For the worship and children’s conference leadership team. 

• That all the participants at the conferences will understand and retain the teachings!

Once again, I'd love to have you sign up to commit to a day to pray. You can do this for multiple days, you'll just have to send the form for each day. I consider your prayers to be an act of love and I appreciate them so much. 

***AND PLEASE LEAVE ME A COMMENT TO LET ME KNOW YOU'RE PRAYING!!***

Our Greatest Enemy

I've just returned from India where God wrecked my heart in a major way. I pray I never get over the people I met in India.  

The Christians there have a strong faith, an unshakable belief that "To live is Christ, to die is gain." They have to. Many of them are turned out of their homes when they become a Christian. Many are persecuted for their faith. Churches may be burned by militant Hindus. Christians may be beaten in the streets and even in their own homes. They have truly counted the cost of following Christ. 

As I spent time among them I was reminded of the Beattitudes Jesus shared in the Sermon on the Mount. The very first verse in this section of Matthew 5 says "God blesses those who recognize their need for Him, for the Kingdom of Heaven is given to them." That convicts me. How often do I truly recognize my need for God?

As I worshipped with my brothers and sisters in India God gave me a word for the American Church, the very church that Indian pastors pray for every Sunday because they say we are "uniquely positioned and resourced to win the entire world for Jesus Christ." Their belief in us is humbling to say the least, especially since I am not so certain that many of us here in America have this as our first priority.

So my post for today is to simply share with you what I feel like God is saying to us as Christians here in America. It's not an easy word. It's not going to be a popular word. You won't love to hear it, but hear it you must. As we worshiped, this is what God said.....

"Our comfort is perhaps our greatest spiritual enemy. We are not desperate for a move of the Spirit of God. Our own comfort and safety has put us into a spiritual stupor. This is dangerous territory. Our hunger is for comfort, safety, our own desires. We order our lives around these things, not around the move of the Spirit. Our longing for safety and comfort determines our priorities, which will not always line up with the promptings and movings of the Spirit. 

The more we have the more we are dissatisfied. The pickier we get. The more we focus on our own needs and petty problems, the less we focus on our desperate and real need for God. When we have much, we lose our desire and desperation for God and become self-conscious, concerned more with ourselves than with God and all He is longing to do. 

As long as our desire is for comfort, safety, and ease, we will have a neutered relationship with God Almighty. Our relationship will be safe, civil, insipid and ultimately powerless. Sadly, this is not the church God can use to change the world, to win people in all corners of the globe to Himself."

I want to be bold. To be courageous. To use this one life to bring God glory in amazing ways. I want my life to count for more than just having lived a safe, insipid, comfortable life when there is so much at stake. I want to long for God more than I long for a hot bath, a big meal, air conditioning or even flush toilets. I want to quit worrying about how I look and start worrying about if I am showing the love of Christ. I want to be able to say that I will obey God even when it is not convenient or safe. I want to give sacrificially so that others might know my Savior.

What do you want? I encourage you to hear from the Lord!

Please pray as I go to India.....

Next week I head out for India, 2nd most populous country in the world, home to 1.2 billion people. Birthplace to Hinduism as well as Buddhism, bordered by countries such as Pakistan, China, and Myanmar. I'm going with Operation Mobilization as part of a teaching team that will be teaching pastors and worship leaders, leading worship, and spending time equipping church leaders there. We will be working mainly with the Dalit people group, those people deemed as the "untouchables" of India. Most pastors are first generation believers and are eager to learn. I'm really looking forward to spending time with my brothers - and sisters - in Christ while in India. I'm excited that I will have a little encouragement to offer them as they minister in Jesus' name. And I know without a doubt I will learn from them and be encouraged by them as well. 

India is a very different world from Madison, Alabama! The culture is completely different. Obviously the language is different and the food is different. I will see and experience many new things - some of which may be uncomfortable and difficult to deal with. It is a place where Christians are persecuted and women are oppressed. The United Nations has deemed the Dalit women as one of the most oppressed groups in the world. Yeah, That makes me very uncomfortable and I'll admit I'm a little nervous. And just this past week the U.S. issued a travel warning for Americans traveling to India urging them to "keep a low profile" and stay "situationally aware" due to recent terrorist activities there. That kinda made my stomach hurt. 

Like I said, it's a different world. Many missionaries have shared that in India they sense "the most powerful spiritual oppression" they've ever seen. And I know this is where God would have me go right now.

With these things in mind I'll admit that I feel a desperate need to be covered by your prayers. 

Please pray:

1) For strength, endurance, health and safety. It's a long trip, a huge time difference, and our days of ministry are long ones. In addition, there is always the concern about our bodies adjusting to food, etc.

2) For insight and wisdom as I am preparing, teaching and interacting. Pray God shows me how to prepare for and respond in each situation. I want to be culturally sensitive, yet share boldly. Pray that God guides each word I say. 

3) Pray against the enemy of our souls. The worship of false gods is alive and well all over India. Please pray against satanic attacks. Pray that we would shine with the light of Christ. This is a huge concern for us.

4) Pray for the pastors that are attending. Many are uneducated, leading a church with little or no help, and have not received any training in Biblical Worship at all. They will come from many tribes of India and not even understand one another's language. We will use many interpreters, so especially pray for supernatural understanding and clarity for them as we teach and "show". We'll be leading worship, asking them to lead worship, teaching, etc. Pray that God speaks clearly to them for what they will need to know.

5) I will most likely be the only woman in the workshops. Pray that the long held prejudice against women in India will not taint their ability to learn from me. Pray that my presence will help break down some of these barriers that still exist in the Christian Church in India. Pray that I can teach humbly, but with confidence and love.

I'd love it if you'd sign up to take a particular day to pray for me. A big thanks to Anne Jackson, who gave me this great idea. I totally ripped this off from her blog! But it will be a great way for me to see who is praying when. Then go to the comments and let me know how you'll be praying. It's comforting to have your support when I am way across the world. Thank you so much for praying!

Welcome to My Home

John went ahead of me, skipping nimbly over the submerged tires, the floating trash, and knowing just which rickety pieces of wood would hold his weight. He turned around and held out his hand. 

Now it was my turn. I looked around me. Pigs were wading in the stream, garbage piled up and lazily drited by. People were watching me. And I was afraid. Not afraid of water mind you. But afraid of falling in this particular water. It stunk. It was putrid. As I looked down at it, a stench rose and made my eyes water. I looked at the "bridge", a rackety arrangement of old boards, half-submerged tires, and rocks I'd need to hop, skip and jump across to reach the community on the other side of the river. 

It was nasty. Easily the worst neighborhood I'd ever been in. From what I understand, it's controlled by drug gangs and is considered a pretty dangerous place. I was completely surrounded every step I took so I'd be safe. Garbage spilled down hillsides, smells of raw sewage filled the air. No one has clean - or even running - water. There is certainly no indoor plumbing. People cook over open fires in the middle of their tiny homes. Children play in the middle of garbage, barefooted and with runny noses. 

After we crossed the "bridge" we stopped into say hello to an old woman cooking her lunch over an open fire in the middle of her living quarters. A little boy ran up to me and smiled really big, wanting his photo taken. We talked a bit  - me in my broken Spanish and he chattering back at me ninety to nothing, apparently unaware I could understand hardly anything he said. But we played together for several minutes and he grabbed my hand and pulled me to meet his Poppi. 

His Poppi was a dignified older man, apparently happy to meet an American woman. We asked him if he knew Jesus and he shared that Christ was his "strength and hope". He asked me where I was from and how I happened to be in the DR. As we shared a bit about my trip, he told me how happy he was that I was visiting. 

Then he stepped back, spread his arms wide, and said something I will never forget. 

He said....

"Welcome to my home."

Thank You

These past two weeks have been filled with many challenges. Almost everything around me was unfamiliar - the landscape, the culture, the language. I was trying some things for the first time. They had never provided any training on worship before. We weren't sure what to expect or how things would turn out. Or even if anyone would come!

In short, although I knew I was answering a call of God, I was scared stiff, wondering if I had resigned my job for nothing. My anxiety was very high on the flight to the Dominican. 

But you, my dear friends, kept me in your prayers! And you kept letting me know you were praying! And that helped me out so much.

So thank you for praying. And thank you for all the communication along the way. Every day you were on my heart as I texted my status updates to Twitter and Facebook. Every experience made me think of you and wish I could share it with you. I felt like I carried you with me! 

Your prayers were a gift. And God answered us! I did not get sick in the DR, I was kept safe, the pastors and leaders all seemed to learn and be excited, and they had safe travel. God went before us where ever we went. I felt His constant presence and I thank Him for all the answers to our prayers. 

Here's a passage of scripture that I've been hanging out in lately. 

"I will keep on hoping for you to help me; I will praise you more and more. I will tell everyone about your righteousness. All day long I will proclaim your saving power, for I am overwhelmed by how much you have done for me. I will praise your mighty deeds, O Sovereign Lord. I will tell everyone that you alone are just and good." - Psalm 71:14-16

So thank you and thank God! I appreciate your support and friendship so much.

Taking It to the Streets...

God touched my heart so deeply this week through this sweet group of men. We are an odd combination - I am a white woman, they are black men. We come from such different worlds - Haiti is, after all, a 5th world country while I live in comfort in an American city. They speak Creole as their first language while I speak English. I've enjoyed many years of education while some of them struggle to write their names and laboriously worked at taking notes.While I have never truly wanted for anything, they face great physical need daily. And while I was driven to DaJabon to our meeting in a nice van, many of them walked for hours, rode in the back of a pick up truck, or came on the back of a motorcycle and crossed the border from their country. And they are senior pastors, where as I've never held that particular role. You might look at us and think we could not be more different. What could we share together that would strengthen and encourage one another? What could we talk about? What in the world could I teach them that they could use in their setting, which is so different from mine?

I don't know what they will take home with them knowledge-wise, but I hope and pray that they will go home encouraged and filled with hope. I hope they will go home knowing someone cares. I hope they have a few tools to try in their church that will help their congregations grow and flourish.

One of the best moments in the workshop with them was when I asked them to tell me what instruments they had in their church. Jonas shared, "A homemade guira. I used a nail and punched the holes in it myself." A couple had a keyboard. One had a flute and a guira.One had a drum. Others had nothing at all. And so I asked them if they had people with good voices and they resoundingly chorused "YES!".

So I said "You have at least two instruments - your voices and your hands. With just this, you can start and grow a worship ministry team." I shared with them how I started with nothing but me at the first church I led in, and how we did not have but one instrument at The Brook when we began. I shared with them that they had more than I had because I was leading white people and "we don't really know how to clap" - and they thought that was very, very funny! I told them - "with a little organization, and taking time to prepare and rehearse, you can have a wonderful worship ministry with what you already have."

You should have seen their eyes light up. This excited them. It gave them hope. As we talked about how to choose songs and put a set together their eyes lit up. They were thrilled to have some new things to try.

In the end I assured them that worship ministry is really all about the heart.....

We ended our time together with a walk to the park in DaJabon for a time of singing. They worked very hard on making a list of songs to do for me. They thought of creative ways to do old songs. While I had envisioned something simple, they took this singing in the park thing quite seriously!

And so they sang.....and I was so touched. Their joy was obvious and infectious.

I don't know what they learned from me but I learned alot from them. And they have made a request of me, and of you, their brothers and sisters in Christ in America. As they held my hand and wished me God's blessings they asked: "Don't forget the church in Haiti. So I ask you to pray for your brothers and sisters in Christ in the country of Haiti.

And now, let me introduce you to my friends from Haiti...Lucceema, Jackson, Hitler, Anul, Icene, Jonas, Lucner, Romano and the rest. Although you won't be able to see them - we were in the dark - you'll be able to hear them. Occasionally you'll see them when a camera flashed! Enjoy meeting my new friends.

Haitian Pastors Singing in the Park from Jan Owen on Vimeo.

Hallelujah! from Jan Owen on Vimeo.

Good Bye from Haitian Friends from Jan Owen on Vimeo.

The Night the Lights Went Out in Santa Lucia

Today was quite a day. I visited a community that is located within an active landfil. It is controlled by gangs, filled with garbage, and reeks of sewage. I crossed a river filled with sewage, trash and smelled the sulphur coming up between my feet. I held and fed children at the nutrition center. I also celebrated Christmas - on Halloween, no less, with a "Feliz Navidad" party for the neighborhood children. And then, as an afterthought to my day (or so I so wrongly thought), I climbed innocently into the truck with G.O. Missionary Dianne Miller and her translator to accompany Dianne as she went across town to share with some ladies about prayer. 

We raced across Santiago (everyone races everywhere here) and got turned around, missed our turn, and got supremely lost. After many phone calls, and after turning around about ten times, and then jolting and careening across unpaved roads with BIG holes in them, we breathlessly - and with many bruises forming - arrived at the church in the community formally called Santa Lucia, but more commonly called "La Mosca". It is called this because it is beside a live, burning landfill. Smoke fills the air at all times. Many people are ill. And because of the landfill, the air is filled with "mosca", or "flies" in English.

As you might imagine, the church in this community is humble. It has about ten simple wooden benches, and down front was a small Casio keyboard and a simple and aging sound system, for which they are very thankful. The warm, humid air was gently stirred by slowly moving ceiling fans. Women fanned away the heat, and children squirmed in their seats. As we began the service two young teenaged girls led us in worship. Even though I didn't know the songs and couldn't understand all the words, I was touched as I saw the women worship and heard them raise their untrained voices in praise. As I worshiped, I felt overcome by the sweetness of the blessing of worshiping with the Body of Christ. Yes, we look a bit different, and we speak different languages, and we live far apart, but we still are The Body.

At the close of the teaching time, Dianne asked us to hold the hand of someone near us and to pray for someone we  love. As I bowed my head, expecting to pray alone because of the language barrier, something happened that is apparently very common here. The lights went out. And it was utterly dark. But there was nothing else we could do, and so we bowed our heads, grabbed a hand near ours, and prayed. Not silently and politely, but out loud, and with all of our hearts. We pled with God on behalf of our children and families, our neighbors, our churches. This room of women stormed the gates of heaven with great urgency there in that dark night. And as the woman that held my hand prayed, I could understand these three words: "Gracias Senor Jesus".

As I sat in that hot little room, surrounded by the babel of a language I can only understand snippets of,so far away from what is "normal" for me, I began to praise God. I began to do what I had taught others to do. I began to praise Him for who He is, for what He's done, for His mighty acts, for His creation, and because He is worthy .I began to thank Him for His love, His mercy, His forgiveness, His joy, His peace. And as I lifted my hand in praise to the God of the entire universe, not just my little world in Madison, Alabama, tears began to stream down my face.

Those moments in the darkness were a holy appointment with God. There was something powerful about sitting in utter darkness and praising God out loud. And as a candle was lit and the darkness was pushed away a bit, I saw that our prayers and praise are like that candle. They literally push back the darkness in this world.

Doesn't that just make you want to get down on your knees for someone? Doesn't that make you want to stand to your feet and praise God?

Go ahead....push back the darkness in this world a little bit more.

Thoughts So Far

  I have really enjoyed my time with this group I'm teaching here in Santiago. Tonight we had 30+ pastors, musicians, and others desiring to learn more about worship. And in spite of "la professora" being a American woman with a southern accent using a Haitian translator (what a test for him my accent was!), I believe we continued to learn together. It was a lively group and I loved hearing their questions and discussions on issues that concern them. It was great to hear the perspectives of the teenagers that may play or sing in a band and also get the perspective of the pastors present with us. We had male and female, young and old (ages 1 - 68!) and both Dominican and Haitian.

It's so obvious to me that this is a group of men and women who deeply desire to honor God with their worship and their lives. Their questions were insightful and show that they are thinking deeply about the present day dilemmas they are facing in ministry and in their church setting and even in their own walks with Christ. And guess what? They are talking about the same things ministers all across America are talking about.

 For example:

 - Is one style of music more spiritual than another? Is it okay to use rhythms in the church that are used in secular music? How do I know what is right for my church? Some want the older songs, some like the newer songs. (Does this sound familiar to anyone else?) We had similar discussions on casual vs. more traditional clothing as well. Basically, it was a discussion about change - the churches here are experiencing change we had in the U.S. a few years ago. It was a great chance to discuss what truly constitutes worship - is it just music, or is it the state and intent of our heart?

 - How can I, as a pastor,be a mature spiritual leader? How can I guard my heart and life against sin, particularly sin of a sexual nature?

 - How can I lead when I feel lonely, hurt, or just tired?

- How do we encourage others to lead?

Some things are so similar to the world of ministry I know so well. And some things are - of course - very different. How can I understand the extreme poverty of my Haitian brothers and sisters? How can I understand the cultural norms of a country I am only visiting? There are things I cannot comprehend that these pastors deal with every single day. I admire them for serving so faithfully.

Yet in these past two days I've felt that common bond - we are all believers in Christ Jesus. We are brothers and sisters in Him. We all desire to worship Him and live for Him. We want to give God our best, but we are still learning how to do that more and more every single day.

And as I stand up and look out at that room filled with so many different, yet beautiful,skin tones and accents, I get one more glimpse into what the reality of heaven will be like. All of us created so wondrously different, yet all for His glory, to proclaim His praise.

I am so thankful for this time here. I am thankful for all God is teaching me. He is encouraging me through these fellow ministers of the Gospel!

For those of you who have given to the Give Worship Project I just want to say a huge THANK YOU. You've made this time of teaching possible. They were excited to receive the books, and desire to grow as worshipers. You have helped strengthen the Body of Christ here in the DR. And I appreciate that so much!

Keep reading - and commenting! I LOVE hearing from you. Tomorrow I'll be visiting "The Hole", which is a community in the landfill. Tomorrow night I'll be teaching my last class here in Santiago - we'll be wrapping up our time with this particular group of leaders. On Monday I'll be traveling to the Haitian border to Da Jabon, where we hope to connect with Haitian pastors from that area.

Signing off for now.....with a grateful and humbled heart.

**A HUGE thanks to G.O. Ministries, who has made this training possible!**

I've arrived!

So by now you may know that I not only arrived safely in Santiago, I also was able to navigate custom, pay my "entrance fee" and then find the missionaries from G.O. Ministries successfully. Actually John and Diane found me! I must have stood out or something. :) For these things I am thankful. That I would be lost in the airport, without transportation, was a fear of mine as I embarked on this adventure. I prayed over this many times!

I spent much of my time in the air today journaling. I talked to God about my excitement, but also my fears. What if no one shows up? What if I don't teach the right thing? What if I make some crazy cultural error?

 What if it simply does not work out and I quit my job for this?????

Yes, that is the horrible terror that has been lurking at my heels, nipping at my soul all week. What if I simply fail? As I prayed about this today, God turned my heart. I began to pray that God would simply guide every thought of my mind, every word of my mouth, and that He would speak through me, giving me great discernment and sensitivity to the needs of these I've come to serve. I asked God to open my heart and mind to the opportunities for true ministry right in front of me, whether or not it looks like what I'd hoped for or envisioned. I prayed that I could lay aside my expectations and not make this about me at all.

As i talked with John tonight (the missionary here), he said just about the same thing: We don't know what to expect. No one's really ever taught them about worship before. We don't know who will show up, or how many will show up, or even how they'll respond. We can just faithfully do all we can do and see how God uses that.

And that is hard, isn't it? To be unsure of an outcome? To take a leap of faith and then not be sure of anything at all except that you've been obedient? To be completely unable to control anything at all?

So tomorrow morning at 9:00 am (EST) I will begin teaching. You can pray for me. But most of all please pray for the leaders and pastors that will attend. Pray that God will strengthen and enlighten them in ways that will grow and benefit His Kingdom and bring Him glory.

As for me right now, I'm sitting in a stuffy apartment listening to the sounds of life outside our door. There are children playing, motorcycles roaring by and people talking. There are mosquitos buzzing hungrily about. And there is the sound of my breath as I pray that God will work in His own way during these ten days.

Until tomorrow.....

Called to Go!

I promised to share with you all the things God is whispering to my heart these days. I want to share with you more than the sadness I feel over leaving The Brook, I want to share what God is calling me to move forward and do. And this particular thing is something that I need your help with!

For a long time - several years now - I've felt God stirring my heart to be involved in worship ministry world wide. Not in a particular country, but in many countries. I began to be so convicted that if I - as a worship pastor - was really passionate about the glory of God, I would be passionate about worship happening not just at my church, but around the world. I love the pictures of heaven we see in Revelation - EVERY tribe, EVERY tongue gathered together worshiping the ONE TRUE GOD! As I prayed about this nudging, I felt God calling me to be a part of worship in every nation here on earth. One way I feel drawn to do this is through equipping fellow worship leaders, particularly those with few resources and little training. I love to teach and mentor and encourage others. This encouragement is something that was rare for me when I began to lead worship many, many years ago. And although there are many other worship pastors that are more technically skilled and musically gifted than I am, I do have many years of experience and a desire to help. When I heard from missionaries that one of the greatest needs in new churches around the world is simply to have the church leader's become well equipped, I knew that this was something I could do. Furthermore, I knew it was something God was calling me to do.

And so I am moving forward. I don't know for sure what this will end up looking like in the future but for now I've taken a few steps. 

1) I've written a basic worship training curriculum to be used in training worship leaders. (and the hand outs have been translated into Spanish)

2) I've said "yes" to working with three different missions organizations to do initial trips to train worship leaders and pastors. All of these trips are as much about research as they are about teaching. I'll be assessing the needs of these leaders for training in future years. This is just the beginning. Here's where I've signed up to go:

 - Dominican Republic with G.O. Ministries - October 27 - November 5. This is JUST NEXT WEEK! I'll be working with about 35 Dominican and Haitian worship leaders, sharing resources with them, and observing lots of worship in the DR!

 - India with HeartSounds International, a division of Operation Mobilization - February 11 - 22, 2010 - I'll be co-teaching with a team on Biblical Worship, How to Build a Worship Ministry, etc. at a training conference for pastors, many of whom are first generation Christians. They are members of the Daleit, a people group that is considered low in the caste system. They are not accepted in churches in India. We will be laying the groundwork for an actual worship workshop there in 2011, developing teaching materials, and paving the way for future training. 

 - I feel a deep nudging from God to say "yes" to go to Rwanda with E3 Partners Ministry March 13 - 28, 2010. Phil and I are praying about this one. I would need a large amount of money quickly, but it's a great opportunity. I would be going to a Church Planting conference and mission, so we can participate in church planting and the beginning of equipping of the leaders for those churches. They have no worship training module presently - but it could be a big open door for the future, a possible opportunity to develop this training. This would be a huge opportunity! But I need $2500 by January 12th and $2000 more by February 12th. That's where you come in!

3) I've applied for non-profit status for The Give Worship Project, which is to fund training and resources for church leaders around the world, particularly in the area of worship. If you go to the website you can read all the details. 

So how can you help? You can invest some of your earthly treasure to make this training a reality. Raising support for my participation in this training will now have to become a huge priority for me! I need many people to step up and say "yes" with me! And every dollar someone gives benefits the church world wide. Isn't that a remarkable thought?

If you'd like to give, through December 31st, here is the way to do it:

Mail a check made out to: The Brook

Address it to:

Jan Owen

106 O'Riley Court

Madison, Alabama 35758

It takes more than one person to make a dream come true. It takes friends and family who believe in both the dream and the dreamer. I hope you'll become a part of what God is calling me to do - as He calls me out of the comfort of my own church, and into THE church around the world.